Thanks for the warm (and fast!) welcome here. I would add that in my case, Kefir alone, without the strict diet, is not enough. If I let myself slide into eating more carbs, my gut lets me know it. I think anyone with dysbiosis should give it a try. It costs nothing once you acquire the first batch of grains, is very easy to make (you really can't screw it up), and is versatile. You can make cheese, water kefir, coconut kefir, and my fave: kefir sour cream made by using half and half as the medium. The grains love to digest lactose, so as long as it goes through a full fermentation cycle, even those that are lactose-sensitive can consume the dairy versions.

The bifido infantis is certainly one that helps me. I didn't know which strain was in Align as I couldn't find it on their website. So that's good to know...
I used to take Metagenics but they stopped making the stuff.

As predicted, my kefir grains have multiplied enough over the past month for me to share with someone who would like to try making their own. In the past, I have shipped them cozied up in some milk powder in double baggies and they have survived the trip quite well. I am happy to do this again - no charge for the grains - I only would ask to be reimbursed for shipping costs (a few bucks).

I only have enough extra grains for one package right now. PM me if you are interested.

I got my live Kefir grains from one of our members, and I have been drinking the kefir every morning since. I do think my grains grow slowly though, and I'm not sure why. I am using organic milk.

Recently I needed to have 4 rounds of antibiotics over one month. Obviously that did a number on my digestive system. My tongue also turned white, and then the red patches, that lets me know the bacteria balance is way off.

I would sip a bit of live kefir and hold it on my tongue. Drinking a few oz every day kept the yeast infection away and helped to keep things under control and rebalance the flora.

Thank you Sue for the live Kefir grains, and Kim for sharing yours with someone who hasn't yet asked for some.

I shared mine with someone very close to me who had gone through several months of antibiotics and 9 surgeries in 19 days in another country several years ago.

He didn't read any of the links from Dom's Kefir website, and when he saw the separation of the whey in the jar he threw the whole thing away. Yes, he knows my phone number!!!

Broke my heart!

Now I'm just frustrated that it seems as if my kefir grains grow so slowly. Any ideas of how to make them grow faster?

Thank you Sue for the live Kefir grains, and Kim for sharing yours with someone who hasn't yet asked for some.

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No takers so far.

Now I'm just frustrated that it seems as if my kefir grains grow so slowly. Any ideas of how to make them grow faster?

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Growth rate is dependent mostly on the room temperature where the grains are cultured. In the summer, my grains grow crazy fast, then when early Autumn comes, almost no growth, then when it's cold enough to have the heat turn on, they start growing again.

They also seem to have a growth cycle where there may be one large grain that grows and grows and then, for whatever reason, will quickly spawn off "babies".

I don't think that organic vs. unorganic milk has much to do with growth rate.

I think you just answered my question quite well. I had about 7 grains. The largest one stopped growing, but suddenly I had 14 grains. Seven of them were really small, but they double in size each day so their growth is rapid.

The room temp is usually 76 degrees but evenings are cooler. Do they like sunlight, or is putting them on the window sill for some morning sun too bright or hot?

I do use a dishwasher, and I think the detergent is quite strong. After the kefir glass bottles have gone through the dishwasher, I fill them up with filtered water and let them sit for 12 or more hours to absorb any residue from the sides of the jar. I pour that out and let them air dry and they are ready for the next batch of kefir.

Do you recommend washing the jars every day, or reusing the same jar for a few days?

I haven't ever exposed my grains directly to sunlight, but I'm sure they could endure a little sunbathing experiment without harm. Maybe try wrapping the jar in a towel so as not to let the sunlight in, but letting the jar warm up a bit. Soon you'll have enough grains to try out a few different methods and find out which one works best. I usually have 2-3 jars going all the time. One is in progress, the others are cultured and put in the fridge until I want to use them. I've kept 'done' kefir in the fridge for upwards of 2 weeks without any problem. The result was a little strong, but still good.

I wash my jars with every new batch. Others will re-use a jar a few times. I tried that years ago, but I thought the jar got a little funky on the top. I'm not as fussy about my jars as you have been. I wash the jars the same as the rest of my dishes (by hand, with a little detergent). Sometimes, the jars are still wet when I make a new batch. Doesn't seem to make much difference.

The thing about these grains is that they are pretty hardy. Chlorine water will kill them if you soak the grains in tap water, but I've accidentally dropped one or two in the sink over the years and a quick tap water rinse, then back into milk has shown me that they are not that easy to kill.

I started making kefir about 2 months ago I think, using live kefir grains. I had tried get some grains from one of those websites where members are supposed to send them to you, but no one responded to my e-mails.

So I went to kefirlady.com, and for $20 she sent me some very good grains via priority mail.

I'm allergic to cow's milk, so am using powdered goat milk I get from Vitacost.

At first it did do a number on my digestive tract (diarrhea), I drank too much (2 cups a day) at first. Now I just make and drink one cup a day and do fine. When the weather was warmer some weeks ago, they grains grew a lot faster, but they're still doing fine. They are chewy and look little cauliflowers but I don't mind and eat the extra! If you get too many and don't feed them, the kefir gets too sour, so you either have to feed them more (add more milk), which gives me too much kefir, or eat them or give them away. I actually gave away grains to 2 people, and both of them let the grains die within a week or so ....

Anyways, it's really easy to do, and kefir lady gives very good instructions, and also if you have to go away for a week or so, you can refrigerate the grains in milk, I think they sort of hibernate, she explains it all.

I'm hoping it will help my immune system, time will tell - but I really encourage anyone interested to give it a try, it is amazingly easy to do. And I have read that the live grains are much better than the dead ones. They do keep multiplying, and the dead ones only work for 5 or 6 times and then you have to get new ones.

With all of my other health problems, I guess I don't have to worry about ever getting thrush - or other yeast infections for that matter - so long as I keep drinking my Kefir.

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Doesn't kefir have yeast in it? Wouldn't that be bad for somebody who has severe fungal hypersensitivity?

The reason kefir is so interesting now is that I had a colonoscopy/gastroscopy, and felt much better in certain ways (IBS and severe mold hypersensitivity, mostly) for a brief period. I attribute it to the prep, which flushed the GI tract. Perhaps, while probiotics (Primadophilus, NFI) help, with IBS but not mold, kefir might help more.

Doesn't kefir have yeast in it? Wouldn't that be bad for somebody who has severe fungal hypersensitivity?

The reason kefir is so interesting now is that I had a colonoscopy/gastroscopy, and felt much better in certain ways (IBS and severe mold hypersensitivity, mostly) for a brief period. I attribute it to the prep, which flushed the GI tract. Perhaps, while probiotics (Primadophilus, NFI) help, with IBS but not mold, kefir might help more.

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I'm not sure about severe fungal hypersensitivity. I was speaking about Candida Albicans overgrowth.

From Dom's Kefir In-site:
Candida albicans has never been isolated from kefir grains [as far as the author is aware at the time of writing]. Conditions make it quite difficult for this particular opportunistic yeast to flourish among the microflora of kefir grains and in kefir. Certain yeasts of kefir include Candida as part of the nomenclature [name]. These yeasts are not pathogenic yeasts as such, but are classified as Generally Regarded As Safe [GRAS]. Some yeast strains of kefir may have the potential to keep C. albicans in check in the host, for research has shown that certain yeast strains of kefir can colonize the gut, giving C. albicans competition for nutrients or good inhibition by some form of chemical action by yeasts, and or the Lactic acid bacteria [LAB] of kefir. Kefiran may also play an important role in this, for research has shown kefiran markedly antagonized the growth of C. albicans, including other strains of unfavourable fungi and bacteria.

So what is the most important probiotic strain amongst various Kefirs that is supposed to help you guys?? Coz i have two definate infections (CMV+enterovirus+possible XMRV) my tongue is white patched on sides but very reddened in the middle after the last enteroviral infection and my gut is completely swollen 24/7. Anything i eat i get bloated and cant work or move around. I live on spasmolytics and antibiotics all the time with horrendous headaches dizziness and hypoglycemias.

Has anyone with irritable bowel syndrome-c type and bloating found any real relief (reduced bloating or other symproms) from probiotics in KEFIR? Is bifidobacterium the one to do the work??

So what is the most important probiotic strain amongst various Kefirs that is supposed to help you guys?? Coz i have two definate infections (CMV+enterovirus+possible XMRV) my tongue is white patched on sides but very reddened in the middle after the last enteroviral infection and my gut is completely swollen 24/7. Anything i eat i get bloated and cant work or move around. I live on spasmolytics and antibiotics all the time with horrendous headaches dizziness and hypoglycemias.

Has anyone with irritable bowel syndrome-c type and bloating found any real relief (reduced bloating or other symproms) from probiotics in KEFIR? Is bifidobacterium the one to do the work??

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Hi solon, it is my belief that it is the symbiotic relationship between all of the probiotics and yeasts in Kefir that make it effective. But in order to tackle the problem, it needs to be twofold. Kefir alone will not help until you stop feeding the beasts. This means no sugar, no starchy vegetables, and no grains. Some would add no fruit, but I believe that only the sweetest of fruits (bananas, for instance) need to be avoided. Berries, tart apples, and grapefruit have been okay for me. I also stopped eating anything that would predictably cause my belly to bloat. That meant beans, cruciferous veggies, onions and garlic. Your triggers might be different (dairy maybe?). Oh, one more thought: it is believed that eating Kefir grains, in addition to the twofold process I've described, may be necessary to get the beasties under control.

For now, you could even rinse with real Kefir to see if it helps your mouth infection (sounds like yeast overgrowth).

if anyone is interested, i have some extra kefir grains.i have been making my own kefr for about 6 months now, and the grais are growin like crazy! i just sent 2 packages of Grains to New York & California.
i got mine from the kefir lady, i still have a few batches. so if anyone is interested i wont even charge you for them, just send what you think the postage would be( a few dollars) to your Favorite cfs site or research going on.
Kat

if anyone is interested, i have some extra kefir grains.i have been making my own kefr for about 6 months now, and the grais are growin like crazy! i just sent 2 packages of Grains to New York & California.
i got mine from the kefir lady, i still have a few batches. so if anyone is interested i wont even charge you for them, just send what you think the postage would be( a few dollars) to your Favorite cfs site or research going on.
Kat

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Kat, that's good of you to offer. There are several members who have asked me for grains, but since I started taking antibiotics, I've been eating some grains each day to help replenish the flora.

Kefir works by fermentation...cant imagine sprinkling it. i used to make it and it was ready the next day just adding the cold milk and letting the plant ferment it. However while I was doing it, I got the worst gut dysbiosis. It probably had some of the probiotics I was not supposed to have...like bifidus. It could have been feeding my overgrowth of enterovirus, staph and staph

I did a stool test later and started on specific probiotics for my overgrowth and have had no problems since. Not game to introduce Kefir again.

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Susan,

Are you saying that bifidus feeds enterovirus and staph? Or maybe that kefir does?

I have just setup my first batch of kefir with dried grains as its the only ones I can find. Does anyone know of anywhere I can get good live grains from in the uk?

Thanks

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xlynx - give the dried grains a few batches to grow first. I'll bet they will revive just fine. If they don't, try this list. It looks like there are two UK kefir makers who will share fresh grains with you.